SC to hear plea against removal of AIFF chief (Lead)

New Delhi, Nov 8 (IANS) The Supreme Court will on Friday hear a plea by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) challenging a Delhi High Court order setting aside the election of NCP leader Praful Patel as its President.

A bench headed by Justice J. Chelameswar on Wednesday directed the listing of the matter to November 10 after AIFF counsel Amit Anand Tiwari sought an early hearing.

The Delhi High Court had on October 31 set aside the election of Patel and others, holding it arbitrary, and appointed former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi as the AIFF administrator.

The High Court told Quraishi to hold fresh elections within five months.

Petitioner AIFF has contended that the appointment of an administrator for running the affairs of the Federation may result in it being derecognised by FIFA — the international body for football.

Tiwari told the court that if the High Court order was not stayed, the AIFF would not be able to bid for the hosting of the Under-20 FIFA tournament. The petition said that the bidding process for the FIFA Under-20 World Cup 2019 is to be completed by November 14, 2017.

Informing the top court that the High court had wrongly set aside results of the election declared on December 21, 2016, AIFF said its elections were set aside when both the Indian Super league and the I- Leage are starting in November.

It also referred to 11 international football events that will take place this year and over the next two years and the chances of the country’s national team participating in it may get jeopardised if it continues to be run by the court-appointed administrator.

AIFF referred to the FIFA suspending the affiliation of Pakistan Football Federation after the appointment of an administrator by the Lahore High Court.

Recently the Lahore High Court had appointed an administrator for the Pakistan Football Federation and FIFA, invoking Article 16 Para 1, Article 16 Para 3 and Article 13 of the FIFA statute, suspended the affiliation of Pakistan Football Federation.

Setting aside the election of Praful Patel and other members of the AIFF executive, the High Court had said that they were conducted without following the National Sports Code.

Patel became acting president of the AIFF in 2008 when its then chief, Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi suffered a cardiac arrest. He was installed as full-time president in October 2009 and was re-elected for a second stint in December 2012.

He got a shot at his third stint as AIFF chief in December last year.

The AIFF had defended Patel’s election for a third term, asserting that it has followed all the provisions laid down in the National Sports Code, FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).